Some personal electronic computing devices, such as laptop computers and smartphones, are capable of presenting content retrieved from the Internet and other networks. These devices are generally designed to provide such content to the user in a personal manner, e.g., the device is generally configured for use and viewing by a single user. In some cases, this content includes web page content that is viewable on the personal electronic computing devices.
Display devices, such as televisions, may generally display video content provided by terrestrial broadcasts, or by cable and satellite programming providers. High definition televisions (HDTVs) are generally capable of decoding video content compressed according to the MPEG-2 and H.264 standards.
In addition to decoding and displaying compressed broadcast video, some display devices are capable of connecting to a network in order to present video content retrieved from networked personal computers and/or from Internet-based sources such as online movie rental services. In general, these display devices provide the user with a user interface with which the user interacts in order to search for and select the content that is to be presented on the display device. However, the interfaces may be based on relatively poor human-interaction models when compared to full featured browser interfaces, and have little or no web rendering ability. Techniques to address the lack of web browsing in such display devices may include building a computer into the television, or inserting a separate set-top-box between the TV and its signal source.